


To Drive the Cold Winter Away

by enigmaticblue



Series: Sun 'Verse [26]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Community: trope_bingo, Huddling For Warmth, M/M, Trope Bingo Round 4
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-04
Updated: 2015-03-04
Packaged: 2018-03-16 06:19:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3477671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmaticblue/pseuds/enigmaticblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In this world, electricity is a luxury, especially in the winter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Drive the Cold Winter Away

**Author's Note:**

> Set in my Sun ‘verse, in the winter of 2017, shortly after While the Weary World Is Sleeping. Written for the trope_bingo prompt “huddling for warmth”

“Papa Dean?”

 

Dean stirred and opened his eyes slowly. “Whuh?”

 

“Papa Dean, we’re cold,” Ryan whispered.

 

Cas stirred beside him. “What’s up?”

 

“We’re cold,” Cora whispered loudly.

 

Dean abruptly realized that he could see his breath in the air. “Aw, shit. Okay, kiddos, climb in. Cas, stay put.”

 

Ryan and Cora climbed into bed, shivering, and huddled close to Cas. “I’m going to figure out what’s going on,” Dean promised.

 

It didn’t take long for Dean to determine that the electricity was off, which wasn’t entirely unheard of for the area. The wind howled outside, and a quick look out a window showed blowing snow, but nothing that would have downed power lines.

 

On the other hand, the last time they had lost power like this, someone had run into a pole and taken out the electricity for all of Cypress Grove. They’d have been in better shape if they had lived in an area served by natural gas, but it was all electricity around here. Thankfully, the state government ensured that the utilities were run fairly well.

 

But that didn’t mean there weren’t problems or outages, and when it happened, they just had to deal with it as best they could.

 

Dean woke Casey first. “Hey, the electricity is out, and the temperature is dropping in the house. Ryan and Cora are in with us. You okay with bunking with Henry tonight?”

 

Casey shrugs. “No, I don’t mind.”

 

Dean woke Henry up briefly to explain, and he said sleepily, “Yeah, that’s fine, Papa Dean.”

 

Casey crawled into bed next to Henry, and Dean threw on another couple of blankets. “Make sure you dress in layers tomorrow, okay?”

 

He got sleepy grumbles in response and smiled, patting the twin lumps, before heading back to his own bed. Ryan and Cora were on either side of Cas, and Dean paused long enough to spread a few more blankets over the top before crawling in, putting Cora between him and Cas.

 

Cas stirred briefly, sharing a rueful look with Dean, and then they went back to sleep.

 

After all, there wasn’t anything they could do about the lack of electricity until someone was dispatched to fix the problem.

 

~~~~~

 

Cas was the first to wake up, and he checked on Ryan and Cora and Dean first. The bed was relatively cozy, but staying under the covers wasn’t going to get anything done. He crawled out over Ryan’s body and wasn’t surprised when Ryan wiggled closer to Cora.

 

Cas hissed at the cold air and quickly began to pull on layers—thermal pants and shirt, heavy canvas pants, a fleece-lined hoodie, two layers of thick socks and his boots. When he reached the front door, he pulled on a coat and went out to find their camping stove, stored in the cellar under the house.

 

Most of the time, they cooked over an open fire when roughing it, but the camp stove was purchased for just such a situation as this one. The first time they’d lost electricity, they’d had to trek into town to stay with Maryanne.

 

This morning, the easiest breakfast was a large batch of oatmeal, liberally laced with brown sugar and dried apples, always a crowd pleaser. Cas grabbed the most perishable items from the fridge and placed them on the back porch to stay cold.  He lit a couple of lanterns, since the cloud cover outside made the house fairly dark.

 

Henry and Casey were the first to emerge, dressed in so many layers they could barely move. Cas hid his amusement and said, “Breakfast should be ready shortly. Henry, do you want to start a fire in the fireplace?”

 

Henry lit up at the idea of being able to perform a task normally reserved for one of the adults or Ben. “Sure, Papa Cas.”

 

“Can I help?” Casey asked eagerly.

 

“Sure,” Henry said generously. “We’ll probably need to grab more wood.”

 

Casey nodded gamely, and they went out to the woodpile stacked outside the backdoor, covered by a tarp to keep the bulk of the wood dry.

 

Once Cas had breakfast going, and he was sure that Henry and Casey were managing the fire, he pulled on a heavy coat and jogged out to the barn. The wind was sharp and biting, with the hint of ice that always spelled trouble. December had been a little warmer than they were used to, but the tail end of January was more than making up for it.

 

Cas climbed the ladder to the loft and knocked on Sam and Ben’s door. “You guys up yet?”

 

Sam opened the door a few seconds later, his long hair hanging in his face. “Is something wrong?”

 

“The electricity is out,” Cas explained, grateful that the loft was so well insulated, and that the wood-burning stove put out sufficient heat to keep them warm. “I’ve got the camp stove for cooking, and we’ve got the fireplace, but you’ll want to dress in layers when you come up to the house.”

 

Sam nodded. “I’ll let Ben and Mary know. Are the kids still having lessons today?”

 

Cas sighed. “I don’t really want to brave the roads, but we may not have a choice. We’re going to have to drain the pipes as best we can to keep them from bursting if they don’t get the electricity back on soon. Dean and I can camp out in front of the fireplace in the house, but the kids should probably either sleep here or in town.”

 

“I think we can pack them into the loft,” Sam said gamely. “Anything I can do, Cas, just name it. Howl gave me the day off. He said it was too fucking cold to be working outside.”

 

“That it is,” Cas admitted. “I could use your help keeping the kids occupied today. We’ll need to keep them moving. That will help ward off the chill.”

 

Sam shrugged. “Sure. It should help keep all of us warm, right?”

 

“Thanks, Sam,” Cas replied. “It’s good to have you here.”

 

Cas had learned the value of positive reinforcement over the years, and he had no problem employing it with Sam. If Sam believed that he was welcome and valued, he might not leave. He seemed settled here for now, and Cas wanted to keep it that way.

 

Reinforcing their need for Sam’s presence was smart, and something Dean might not think about doing himself, but Cas had no problem making it plain.

 

When Cas got back to the kitchen, Dean was there, looking even bulkier in layers, limping around the kitchen, stirring the oatmeal and keeping the kids entertained. “Hey, it’s no problem,” he said as Cas entered the kitchen.  “If we don’t have hot water to wash up, we’ll stay dirty. And we’ll wait until we can get cleaned up to even think about it.”

 

Predictably, there was a muted cheer from Ryan and Cora, who were in a bath-hating phase.

 

“We’ll make do,” Dean said, giving Cora a quick hug. “When we lived at Uncle Bobby’s, the heat went out all the time, and the loft is warm enough.”

 

“We’ll just huddle together for warmth,” Cas announced. “And if it gets too cold, we’ll head into town.”

 

Dean gave Cas a brief, hard kiss. “You want to start on the pipes?”

 

“We’d better,” Cas said. “Sam should be in soon with Ben and Mary. Henry, Casey, hold down the fort for us.”

 

The first year they’d been in the house, the electricity had gone out for four days, and it had been sheer, dumb luck that Maryanne had taken it upon herself to check on them. She had been the one to walk them through turning the water to the house off and draining the pipes that first time, and then had bundled them back into town to stay with her.

 

It had been crowded, but the kids had loved having the run of the store, and she’d kept them busy doing little chores and errands for her.

 

By now, he and Dean were old hands at this, and Cas grabbed the buckets and jugs they’d use for water storage until it was safe to turn the water back on.

 

“Just like old times, huh?” Dean asked as Cas filled up the first jug from the tub.

 

Cas smirked. “At least we don’t have to deal with dirty diapers this time around.”

 

Dean grimaced. “Shit, that was awful.”

 

Disposable diapers weren’t widely available these days, or in this area of the county, and so he and Dean had been forced to use cloth diapers for Cora and, briefly, Ryan. It had been bad enough when they had all the water from their well that they needed, but when the electricity had shut off for four days that winter…

 

There were some things best not remembered in any kind of detail.

 

“Hey, guys,” Sam said, sticking his head in the door. “What can I do to help?”

 

Cas started filling another jug. “You can take the jugs to the kitchen, and a bucket to the other bathroom.”

 

“I can take care of it,” Dean protested.

 

“Not with your knee,” Cas said, “and I know this weather is bad for your leg. _You_ can make sure the kids have eaten and get your own breakfast.”

 

Dean agreed, with some grumbling. “I’m fine, you know. And hey, we won’t have any trouble with ice for my knee.”

 

Sam, who appeared to be wearing most of his clothing, willingly hauled water to the areas of the house where they’d need it, and then shut off the water once Cas was certain they’d have enough to last five or six days while he and Dean let the faucets run.

 

Any longer than that without electricity, they’d have to consider going into town.

 

By then, it was nearly lunchtime, and Dean had set the kids up in an assembly line to make sandwiches. Cas boiled some water in the pot he’d used for the oatmeal—which had been completely consumed, as far as he could tell—and quickly scrubbed it out.

 

Dean had apparently anticipated Cas’ end game, because he’d kept the sandwiches to peanut butter and jelly, leaving the ham in the fridge for the soup Cas planned on making for dinner. They had plenty of fuel, and had stocked up before winter hit, so he could let the soup simmer all day.

 

“All right,” Sam said, clapping his hands together. “Who wants to play Simon Says?”

 

Dean winced as he got to his feet. “Yeah, I—”

 

“You relax,” Sam ordered. “You and Cas. I’ve got this.”

 

Dean’s pleasure was obvious and unabashed. “Thanks, Sammy.” He hesitated and added, “It’s good to have you here, man.”

 

Sam looked incredibly pleased. “Yeah? It’s good to be here.”

 

Cas gave Dean an approving look, and Dean smiled, clearly pleased to have Sam with them.

 

~~~~~

 

Dean could hear children giggling in the background. Cas had anticipated needing to sleep down by the fire, so he’d brought down the sleeping bags stored in the attics, as well as pillows and blankets from their own bed and others.

 

They’d made a comfortable nest in front of the fire, and Dean was leaning against Cas’ side, watching the flames eat at the logs in the fireplace. “This is nice.”

 

“Mm,” Cas agreed. “It _is_ nice, but I will be happier when the electricity comes back on.”

 

“You don’t trust that it will,” Dean observed. He’d initially been reluctant to get down on the floor, but it would be awhile before he had to get up again, and it was warmer here.

 

Cas shrugged, which Dean felt but didn’t see, leaning against Cas as he was. “I don’t know that trust is the right word,” Cas admitted. “But I know there may come a day when the electricity does not come back, and I’m not sure what we would do.”

 

“We’d make do,” Dean said. “We did okay at Bobby’s, and the electricity was out more often than it was on.”

 

Cas made a disgruntled sound. “That was not a pleasant winter, Dean.”

 

“No, but we survived,” Dean pointed out. “And we’re in much better shape here. The loft will stay warm, and we can pile in here with the fireplace if necessary. We’ll figure out the water situation if we have to.”

 

Cas held him tight. “As long as we’re all together, I suppose we can figure anything out.”

 

“Sam’s good with the kids, isn’t he?” Dean asked, seeking validation. He was just so damned pleased to have Sam here, and he wanted confirmation that it was the right call to have his brother around.

 

Cas laughed softly. “Your brother is very good with the children.” A shriek of laughter floated down the stairs. “And it is good to have him here. You’re happier.”

 

“I think he’s staying,” Dean said, hating the hope in his voice, but finally feeling that it might be justified. “I mean, he seems settled, and I think he wants to stay.”

 

“He made his decision,” Cas said soothingly. “He was here for Christmas, and he’s formed a close bond to Casey and Ben. I think that’s part of the reason Sam wanted to do this today, He wants to get to know the other kids, too.”

 

Dean stirred. “We should probably try to insulate the room as much as possible,” he said, even though he really didn’t want to move.

 

“You’re right,” Cas said regretfully, and then helped Dean up so they could tack blankets over the large windows that faced out into the front yard. They tacked another blanket over the doorway to the hall along two sides so that people could come and go.

 

Dean was never so grateful for the old fashioned farmhouse, since there was one long hallway and rooms leading off of it, but there was no open floor plan. It was easier to close off rooms that way.

 

At one time, the living room had shared a chimney with the kitchen, but some past owner had taken that out when they’d put in the electric stove. On the other side of the hallway was the study, where the kids did their homework, and the dining room, although the walls had been knocked down to extend the kitchen.

 

There was a tiny bathroom on the main floor that someone had put in, and a full bath on the second floor that the kids shared. At some point, a bathroom had been put into the master suite, decreasing the space of the bedroom in favor of an en suite. Dean was often grateful for that.

 

Right now, he was grateful that it was so easy to insulate the living room. If they shared body heat, it would be comfortable. The kids would be okay in the loft for the night.

 

The scent of ham and bean soup filled the house, the living room warmed up, and the sounds of happy children filtered down from upstairs.

 

Dean rejoined Cas in front of the fire, and relaxed against him once again. “I’ve had worse days,” he admitted.

 

“Me, too,” Cas replied. “And really, as long as the electricity comes back on, I think I’ll be fine.”

 

Dean hummed. “You know, the kids will probably sleep in the loft tonight, which means an empty house.”

 

Cas chuckled. “Whatever will we do?

 

“Oh, I can think of a few things,” Dean replied.

 

Cas kissed him hard and deep, and while they had time before they were alone, it was a promise of things to come.


End file.
